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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health workforce

Ambulance Deserts: Geographic Disparities in the Provision of Ambulance Services
Chartbook presenting data on ambulance deserts from 41 states in 2021-2022, and identifying places and people that are more than 25 minutes from an ambulance station. Include maps of ambulance desert locations and health care facility locations for every state with available data, and documents coverage gaps in the provision of ambulance services across geographic areas across the United States.
Author(s): Yvonne Jonk, Carly Milkowski, Zachariah Croll, Karen Pearson
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Maine Rural Health Research Center
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When It's Not Enough: Sleep's Impact on Rural America's Health and Safety
Discusses the impact of sleep on rural health and public safety, with insights from clinical sleep experts, a federal public health agency representative, and Nebraska Extension.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Barriers to Rural Health Care From the Provider Perspective
Results of a study using data from interviews with 20 healthcare providers in rural areas of western Pennsylvania. Explores barriers to care, including cost and insurance, geographic dispersion, and provider shortage and burnout. Offers strategies for improvement, including use of telehealth, mobile clinics, and increased use of advanced practice providers.
Author(s): Avinash Maganty, Mary E. Byrnes, Megan Hamm, et al.
Citation: Rural and Remote Health, 23(2), 7769
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
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Understanding the U.S. Behavioral Health Workforce Shortage
Discusses the shortage of behavioral health professionals across the country and highlights some of the contributing factors. Breaks down factors affecting licensed providers, clinical supporters, community care workers, and frontline workers. Makes recommendations for policymakers and includes considerations for rural areas.
Author(s): Nathaniel Counts
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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Rural Healthy People 2030: Common Challenges, Rural Nuances
Policy brief focused on Rural Healthy People 2030, a companion piece to the Healthy People 2030 initiative with a focus on health priorities of rural populations. Features rural stakeholder perspectives on the top 20 Rural Healthy People priorities with breakdowns by census region, Medicaid expansion status, gender, age, race, and field of employment.
Author(s): Morgan Kassabian, Aakriti Shrestha, Timothy Callaghan, et al.
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Southwest Rural Health Research Center
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Improving Health Care Access in Rural Communities: Obstacles and Opportunities
Presents the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance, Subcommittee on Health Care hearing on improving access to high-quality, affordable healthcare in rural communities. Discusses workforce issues, education pipeline, transportation, broadband, school-based health centers, payment models and value-based care, and rural-friendly policies. Features testimonies from representatives of Frances Mahon Deaconess Hospital, Choptank Community Health System, Essentia Health, and the Sheps Center For Health Services Research.
Additional links: Testimony by David Herman, Testimony by Erin Aune, Testimony by Mark Holmes, Testimony by Sara Rich
Date: 05/2023
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Finance, Subcommittee on Health Care
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Pandemic Era Telehealth Innovations in the Mental Health and Substance Use Treatment Fields: Practice-Informed Findings and Recommendations
Report highlights some takeaways from the expansion of telebehavioral health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Discusses the ways behavioral health providers adapted telehealth to their practices and the effect that had on access, outcomes, and care utilization, among other factors. Details the effect telebehavioral health had on expanding access to rural areas.
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Council for Mental Wellbeing
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Health Care Capsule: Accessing Health Care in Rural America
Discusses challenges rural communities face related to healthcare access, such as limited healthcare providers, travel distance and transportation issues, insurance coverage, and access to broadband. Provides policy recommendations from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) to address rural healthcare disparities.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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How Regional Partnerships Bolster Rural Hospitals
Explores how Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) and other rural providers partner to overcome challenges. Profiles six regional partnerships that address staffing, quality improvement, contracts with payers, value-based payment, and community development. Offers lessons learned that could inform policy changes to strengthen rural providers.
Author(s): Martha Hostetter, Sarah Klein
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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HRSA Grants and Funding Opportunities for Rural Health
A webinar recording that provides an overview of Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) programs for rural and underserved communities, such as Bureau of Health Workforce (BHW) programs, the National Health Service Corps (NHSC), the State Loan Repayment Program (SLRP), the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP), and more. Includes resources for related data and information.
Additional links: Slide Deck
Date: 05/2023
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organizations: Health Resources and Services Administration, Kansas Department of Health and Environment
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